The Secretary of the Ministry of Defence of Pakistan, Lieutenant General (Retd) Muhammad Ali, has paid a courtesy call on Sri Lanka’s Deputy Minister of Defence, Major General (Retd) Aruna Jayasekara, at his office in Colombo. 

Lieutenant General (Retd) Muhammad Ali arrived in Sri Lanka on Wednesday (01 Jul) for an official visit to participate in the 6th Pakistan–Sri Lanka Armed Forces Defence Dialogue, which was held earlier yesterday (03 Jul).

The Deputy Minister warmly welcomed the visiting Pakistani Defence Secretary, and the two high-ranking dignitaries held cordial discussions on a range of bilateral matters of mutual importance, a statement said. 

The discussions mainly focused on the Sri Lanka–Pakistan Armed Forces Defence Dialogue, enhancing bilateral defence cooperation, strengthening military-to-military engagements, and promoting collaboration in areas of shared strategic importance.

The discussions also extended to potential collaboration in Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA) and Disaster Management. In particular, they emphasized the importance of disaster mitigation through a comprehensive approach encompassing prevention, preparedness, and response, the ministry said.

Both parties agreed to share best practices and expertise by building on existing collaborative mechanisms such as virtual coordination meetings, the exchange of weather forecasts, and active participation in regional disaster management exercises.

Lieutenant General (Retd) Muhammad Ali expressed his appreciation for the warm hospitality extended by the Government of Sri Lanka and reiterated Pakistan’s unwavering commitment to further strengthening the longstanding defence partnership between the two countries, a relationship built on mutual understanding, equality, trust, and mutual respect.

The meeting was also attended by the Defence Advisor at the High Commission of Pakistan, Colonel Muhammad Farooq.